Smudger/Behind the Scenes
Background Information ''The Railway Series'' Smudger is the first character in the television series to not originally come from the Railway Series. However, his role replaces that of Stanley (No. 2), a red American 4-6-0 narrow gauge pannier tank engine from Duke the Lost Engine. Unlike Smudger, Stanley was converted into a pumping engine not a generator. Both Stanley and Smudger share the same number. In the illustration of Stanley as a pumping engine, he is incorrectly portrayed as a saddle tank engine. The same error was made in the magazine story, Duncan Has a Spill. File:Stanley(NarrowGauge).png|Stanley File:SmudgerMagazine.jpeg|Smudger as a generator in a magazine story The story of the character (Stanley) becoming a stationary boiler was based on a time early in the preservation period of the Ffestiniog Railway when the locomotive Palmerston (a sister locomotive to Prince, Duke and Bertram's basis) was being used as a stationary boiler. Palmerston was eventually restored to operating condition in 1993. File:PalmerstonStationaryBoiler.jpeg|Palmerston as a stationary boiler ''Television Series'' Smudger is a fictional 0-4-0 narrow gauge well-tank locomotive created by Britt Allcroft and David Mitton. Smudger is depicted as a reckless and rough engine, who was later converted into a generator. Smudger was introduced in the fourth season of Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends. He only appeared in the episode, Granpuff. Like Rheneas, he is based off the Talyllyn Railway's No.2 Dolgoch. Dolgoch has appeared in The Railway Series and is mentioned as being Rheneas' twin. File:DolgochGreen.jpg|Smudger's basis, Dolgoch File:DolgochGreen2.jpeg Behind the Scenes O gauge model (Small scale) Smudger was repainted and recycled from Rheneas' model, which was custom built to run on O gauge track to the Gauge 1 Scale Standard. It was painted using glossy car body paint and lined with gold and black Letraline pin-striping tape. The number and nameplates were custom printed foil stickers . Smudger's wheels were sourced from Slater's 10 spoke Wantage Tramway wheels. These wheels were used on an O gauge locomotive chassis. All the narrow gauge steam engine side rods were sourced from old OO scale Triang models and modified slightly to fit. These rods did not fit well at all and the engines ran notoriously bad behind the scenes . Four different facial expressions were worn by Smudger on-screen. The faces were first sculpted in clay, after which resin casts were made of a silicone mould . File:SmudgerFaceGuide.png|Smudger's faces The model had a motor to power it mounted inside the chassis as well as an eye mechanism. The eye mechanism used servos which were mounted in the cab - the servos were hidden by blacking out the cab and windows. Metal rods went all the way from the servos in the cab to a bracket in the smoke box behind the faceplate, one for up and down movement and one for left and right movement. This limited the range of movement of the eyes as well as being cumbersome and jamming often. Although the model did not produce smoke, smoke was released from the set under them. That the smoke tended to drift out the funnel to create the illusion as if they do for a brief moment . As he shared the same model as Rheneas, the inside of his cab and the front of his cylinders were red. In a promotional image of Smudger as a generator, the red from Rheneas' coal bunker and wheel arches can be seen. File:SmudgerHeadonPromo.png|Smudger's model File:Granpuff82.png After the events of the fourth season episode, Granpuff, Smudger's model was later reverted back to Rheneas. In the fourth season episode, Gallant Old Engine, Rheneas is seen wearing Smudger's upset face-mask. In the fifth season episode, Toby's Discovery, his happy face mask was reused for Bertram. File:RheneaswithSmudger'sFace.png|Rheneas with Smudger's upset face mask in Gallant Old Engine File:MainBertramModel.png|Bertram's model recycles Smudger's face mask in the fifth season Voice Actors * Nobuhiko Kazama (Japan) References Category:Behind the Scenes Category:Images from behind the scenes Category:Images of Smudger